September 2017

The festival of lights is getting closer by the day, which means it’s time to begin shopping as soon as possible. Whether it’s new clothes for the whole family or a home upgrade with brand new furniture and electronics; buying your spouse the latest phone or gifting your parents the LED TV they’ve always wanted, here’s your chance to shop to your heart’s content—without feeling the financial pinch. Bajaj Finserv’s Sparkling Diwali offer brings you everything you’ve wanted to get this festive season at exclusive discounts.

With over one million products from 50 different categories to choose from, available at more than 43,000 partner stores across 950 + cities across the country, this is a whole new reason to celebrate. And what’s more, you can start shopping even if you don’t currently own an EMI Card.

Here’s all you need to know about Bajaj Finserv’s Sparkling Diwali offer:

Offer valid on everything you could wish for: You can opt for No Cost EMI on smartphones, apparel, furniture, LED TVs, refrigerators, ACs, washing machines, laptops, and much more, all available at great discounts.

Visit the retail store of your choice: You can browse for your favourite products across more than 50 categories at 43,000+ partner stores.

No need to have a Bajaj Finserv EMI Card: Between the 21st of September to the 20th of October, you can avail any of the offers within a pre-approved limit, even without an EMI Card! Just check your pre-approved limit and get started.!

Prizes galore: There are also tons of prizes to be won! Here are some spectacular rewards for you:

12 cars for the highest spenders during the 30-day period

68 bikes for the highest-spending business owners on a daily basis

615 gold vouchers for the highest-spending business owners on a daily basis

Up to 100% cashback on LG LED TVs

New customers rejoice! If you are a new customer, Bajaj Finserv welcomes you with open arms and even more rewards:

MakeMyTrip foreign travel voucher up to Rs.70,000 for the highest weekly spender during the event

According to a survey conducted in 2016 by the National Law University, Bengaluru, there has been an alarming rise of 400% in cases related to medical negligence filed in consumer courts. Therefore, the need for doctors to be financially and legally insured is gaining momentum, so that they can protect themselves if they are sued for mistakes, negligence, or malpractice.

The reasons cited for the rise in the number of cases of medical negligence, as per the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD), which surveyed 1200 resident physicians, are as follows:

Only 10-15% cases are genuine, with doctors being found guilty.

30% cases are due to the patients’ expectations not being met, after paying high medical expenses.

20% cases are caused by patient anxiety and limited understanding of the technical details of the case.

15% are cases of error or negligence. Out of these, the majority of cases are due to improper consent from relatives before performing certain medical procedures, switching hospitals, or inadequate documentation of diagnosis and treatment.

What is Professional Indemnity or PI insurance? How does it help doctors?

Professional indemnity is an insurance plan to financially safeguard medical practitioners against legal costs and claims for compensation by patients in case of a legal suit. Legally, it is a protection from liabilities for physical and financial damages caused during the course of treatment. At times, the amount is quantified based on the mental trauma and stress that the course of events has caused to the patients. In such cases, patients’ expectation of monetary compensation is huge.

Due to the rise in litigation, doctors should apply for indemnity insurance every year. Senior surgeons are estimated to pay around 10% of their annual income towards premium of PI insurance. The premium for indemnity insurance is usually around 0.3% – 1% of the sum insured.

Coverage under PI Policy

Mostly, professional indemnity policies offer protection against and cover for:

Extent of financial damage or loss to the victim which is not a result of willful neglect

Unintentional errors and omissions

Insurance extended to other qualified employees, unqualified employees, and partners in the same practice

Cost of defending oneself in the court of law

Compensation from insurance company, concept of AOY: AOA

The policy will pay the sum insured that was set as a limit for a particular cover. For example, if the sum insured is Rs. 5,00,000, then it will be the maximum amount that the insurance company will pay in case a claim arises. In case a claim for Rs. 6,00,000 is submitted to the insurer, the insurer will pay only Rs. 5, 00,000 and the difference amount of Rs. 1,00,000 has to be borne by the practitioner. The cover that needs to be taken has to be decided based on the factors such as the risk involved in practice, and the probability of occurrence of events which may lead to litigation.

The sum insured is referred to as Limit of Indemnity and is fixed as ‘per accident’ and ‘per policy period’, also referred to as Any One Accident (AOA) limit and Any One Year (AOY) limit. The ratio of AOA and AOY limit needs to be chosen while taking a policy and it is the deciding factor for the amount payable for each accident or incident of negligence.

The types of AOY and AOA ratios offered depend on the insurance company. The AOY: AOA ratio usually ranges from 1:1 to 1:4, where the period of policy i.e. 1 year, is constant and the number of incidents in a year varies from one to four.

Here’s an example to explain this concept better. Consider a doctor who has indemnity cover for Rs. 50,00,000 and has a policy with an AOY-AOA ratio of 1:2. In case he is liable to pay Rs. 30,00,000 as compensation for a lost case, the company will only pay Rs. 25,00,000, since the policy has to cover two accidents in a year. Thus, the practitioner will still have a cover of the remaining Rs. 25,00,000 for another accident during the same period.

Exclusions

Professional indemnity may not cover claims arising from the following aspects of a practice:

Intentional non-compliance, willful neglect, or deliberate act of inflicting injury to the patient

Loss of goodwill

Medical practice done under the influence of alcohol or narcotics

There is an increasing awareness among patients regarding their rights. A strong likelihood of garnering sympathy from the judicial system is one of the reasons for the rise in the number of lawsuits against medical practitioners. It is therefore important for doctors to have an insurance cover that takes care of the legal and financial risks of operating a medical practice.

Bajaj Finserv offers indemnity insurance for doctors up to Rs. 2 crore, with attractive premiums and hassle-free claim processing. Doctors have a wide range of cover options to choose from and can avail benefits from various features of the insurance policies, such as claims arising from loss of documents, unintentional breach of confidentiality, and more.

Whether you are seeking finance for personal or professional reasons, a customised loan for doctors is a great choice. They have been specifically created to cater to the needs of medical professionals like you and offer a suite of 4 different loans. These include a personal loan, business loan, home loan and loan against property.

Let’s look at each of them in more detail:

Personal Loan for Doctors

Whether it is financing your child’s higher education or going for a family trip abroad, you can use this loan for just about anything. Through a personal loan, you can avail up to Rs.30 lakh with a flexible tenor of 1 to 5 years. This loan does not require you to attach any collateral or get a guarantor to co-sign with you, making its application fast and the approval even faster.

Home Loan for Doctors

You can take a home loan for doctors in case you are planning to buy a new home. Through this loan, you can avail a loan up to Rs. 2 crore with a tenor of up to 20 years. Additionally, this loan provides services like property search assistance and a property dossier that guides you through the legal and technical aspects of owning a home.

Business Loan for Doctors

If you are looking to renovate your clinic, hire additional staff, or buy new medical equipment for your practice, you can choose a business loan for doctors. You can avail up to Rs.30 lakh via this loan for all your professional needs with a flexible tenor of 1 to 5 years. This is an unsecured loan that also offers you a convenient line of credit facility.

Loan Against Property for Doctors

This is a secured loan option that requires you to mortgage your residential or commercial property to receive funds. This loan also comes with the property search, property dossier and customised insurance services. With this loan, you can get funds up to Rs.2 crore with a tenor of up to 15 years. You can use it to buy another property, renovate your home, buy assets and more.

Now you have a better idea of the different loans for doctors, take a look at the benefits that they offer:

Low-cost EMIs: These loans feature affordable interest rates. This means that you can save a significant portion of your income by paying lower EMIs. As a result, your financial burden is significantly reduced.

No Additional Fees: Usually, loans feature a range of additional fees and charges. These can be billed at the time of signing the sanctioning letter, getting a home loan balance transfer or later during the tenor. However, a loan for doctors levies no such additional charges.

Collateral-Free: The personal and business loans for doctors don’t require you to submit any collateral. Therefore, you don’t have to put any of your valuable assets at stake.

Value-added Services: As mentioned before, the home loan and loan against property under this suite feature value-added services like property dossier and property search services. These services help you find the property you need without any hassle.

Line of Credit: This convenient facility allows you to withdraw funds as and when you need them. The interest is calculated on this amount and not the value of the entire loan. On a monthly basis, you’re required to pay only the interest. The principal amount can be repaid at the end of the tenor. This feature comes in handy when you can’t predict the amount of financing you need or have fluctuating requirements.

Part Pre-payment Provision: If you have surplus funds, you can pay off the principal amount in part pre-payments at no extra charge. All you have to ensure is that your pre-payment is equal to or greater than the total of three EMIs. This helps you reduce your EMIs considerably and pay off your loan faster.

Are you wondering how to raise money for refurbishing your home? Or do you need affordable financing to fund your child’s education? No matter what you need money for, if you already have a home loan, a top up loan can help combat your financial worries.

A home loan top up is available at low interest rates and is the best source of finance for existing home loan borrowers or those looking to do a home loan balance transfer. You can use this loan for a range of purposes like financing a home renovation, purchasing an asset like a vehicle, upgrading your household appliances and electronics, financing your children’s education or funding a wedding. One of the primary benefits of a top up is that it doesn’t require you to go through any lengthy application procedures. Another advantage of a top up loan is that it offers much lower interest rates as compared to other loans available in the market.

An Insider’s Look At Top Up Loans

Top up loans can be defined as a loan that is borrowed over and above a home loan; hence, it is referred to as a top up loan. Lenders offer this facility exclusively to home loan borrowers. This is because after purchasing a home, a home owner is sure to incur numerous other costs, and if a lender is satisfied with their ability to repay the new loan, they are offered a top up. You can usually apply for a top up loan from 6 months to 1 year from when you first take a home loan or immediately when you transfer your home loan to a new lender. This is because a lender analyses your ability to repay the top up loan alongside your home loan. After seeing whether your EMIs have been timely and consistent and studying your income statement, a lender will offer you a top up. You can also approach your lender to ask for a top up. In the case of balance transfers, a top up loan is one of the many benefits a lender offers you for refinancing your home loan.

What Makes Top Up Loans A Winner?

There are numerous reasons why you should apply for this loan. From low interest rates to easy and quick application, top up loans offer you everything you need. Here are some benefits of top up loans:

Simple Eligibility: These loans do not have rigid eligibility criteria that are tough to match up to. Since most of the eligibility documents are submitted at the time of borrowing the home loan, you don’t require too much more documentation at the time of availing a top up loan. All you have to do is get in touch with your lender and request for a top up loan Your lender will then do the needful.

Quick and Instant Application: This type of loan doesn’t require you to go through the whole hassle of an application process. If you have a good repayment history on your home loan and show that your earnings are capable to paying off a new loan, your lender will disburse your top up loan to you almost instantly.

Affordable Interest Rates: Top up loans have interest rates that range from 8% to 12%. These rates are much lower than the interest rates for other loans. Hence, a top up loan is much more convenient, affordable and beneficial for the borrower.

Convenient Tenor: The tenor for these loans are usually the same as the repayment duration left over on your home loan. This makes it more convenient for you to manage your EMIs and pay them in an organised fashion. Also, if your home loan tenor is a long one, your EMIs for the top up loan would be spread across a longer term and hence its EMIs will put less of a financial burden on you.

No Additional Collateral or Guarantee: Top up loans do not require you to submit any additional collateral as security or even have a guarantor. This makes them much more convenient.

Tax Exemption: If you use your top up loan for buying or constructing new residential property, then you will save tax. You can get tax benefits on the principal repayment of your top up loan under Section 80C and for your interest payment under Section 24. If you use the amount for home repair or adding a feature to your property, you will be eligible to save tax on your interest payment under Section 24.

If you already have a home loan, and have a reason to borrow funds, for home-related expenses or otherwise, get a convenient and affordable top up loan today! Apply now for a top up loan from Bajaj Finserv and find out the many advantages it offers you.

Investments can be the best way to make some extra income. Being so; there are still some people who hesitate when investments are considered. They usually prefer saving their money rather than investing it. A major reason behind this can be the stories they have heard about investments turning into a nightmare. Although, investments are a great form of making profits; if not planned well it can really pull the investor down into loss and debts.

In many cases, people prefer investing in high-risk investments as they provide an instant profit. But when stepping into such investment, what they generally forget is the consequences that come along with it.

In case, if you are one of these people, then you have landed on the right page!

When parking funds in these investments, people usually earn a profit at the start or if not so, despite the constant fall down they still tend to stick hoping for a profit in future. What you need to know here is, to move on! However, if your current investment is not offering you the desired benefits or is underperforming, then you need to shift your investment plans and let go the current investment.

What can you do in such times?

Although the answer here is quite simple – let go, it is surely easier said than done. Even though you plan to withdraw yourself from these investments, you might certainly want another place to park these funds or make some extra money. Now, allocating these funds in a savings account is surely not an option. However, savings accounts can be a safe place but surely won’t earn you higher returns. So, you need to shift your attention from mutual funds, shares and gold investments to low-risk investments like fixed deposits.

Though FD does not offer returns as high as mutual funds and stock market shares; the interest rates are quite high than that of savings account. Besides, the investment avenue is safe and involves less risk. Talking about the FD interest rates, it offers a fixed rate of interest till its maturity. However, this means the FD rates don’t depend upon the market conditions. Since the market condition keeps on fluctuating, the risk involved in it is high. Therefore, the chances of ending up in loss increases. Now, it is not always that you might end up in a loss when investing in such investments, but a loss is certain. However, the situation in the fixed deposit is different – as there is no chance of loss.

Now, fixed deposits do not only offer good returns to its investors. Apparently, there is a lot more to benefit from.

Easy access:

Fixed deposit provides online assessment, which makes applying and managing the FD accounts easy. Once you fill the form online, the lender will call you to pick the documents and cheque.

Tenure:

Fixed deposit offers its investors with flexible tenure option. However, you can select the tenure period which suits you the best. You are free to choose the tenure between one to five years. Also, the tenure that you choose determines your interest amount. Thus, it is important to choose it accordingly.

Senior citizen fixed deposit:

Financial institutions offer higher interest rate to senior citizen fixed deposit than that of normal FD accounts. However, the senior citizens can also benefit from various schemes provided by the lender.

When investing in high-risk investments, there is no such assurance of the money you have invested. However, it is different in fixed deposits. FD provides you with an insurance worth INR 1 lakh on the invested amount. Thus, this assures the money you have parked safely.

Concluding with, if your current investment plan is upsetting you with underperformance, you can look forward to investing in the fixed deposit; since, fixed deposit involves less risk and offers high returns

Risk-free investment is what most of the people are interested in. Nobody wants to risk his or her hard-earned money in an avenue which does not provide safety of returns. Such is the time that people do not just want to safeguard their funds but also increase it considerably. The minimal risk would never yield returns which are as high as those with high risk. However, there is a middle ground. In this area there are options wherein, the investment options are risk-free, and they offer a higher amount of returns.

These investment options help you to earn a considerable profit with security and tax savings. Each of these investment options has certain peculiar feature. Based on these options, you can choose which form of investment is the most favourable one for you.

Here are a few risk-free investment options:

Fixed Deposits: FD (Fixed Deposit) is inarguably one of the safest investment avenues. They are preferred over any investment when it comes to safety. Fixed Deposits are a go-to-option because they offer higher returns with minimal risk. There are options available when it comes to investing in a fixed deposit. FD interest rates are higher as compared to a savings account. Furthermore, the fixed deposit offered by the Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) is as good as market linked risk prone investments. Leading NBFCs are offering interest rates of up to 8% on fixed deposit investment.

Post Office Deposit: An investment in Post Office Deposit can be made up to 5 years. The longer the tenure you opt for, the higher will be the rate of interest you earn. Though the interest earnings are not as high as NBFCs’ fixed deposit; it is a good way to accumulate money over the large period. The primary benefit under this investment avenue is that you receive tax benefits.

Recurring Deposits: Under this option, you need to make the regular monthly investment. It is a good option for investors with stable monthly income. Recurring deposit is the combination of fixed deposit and savings. An investment in recurring deposit can help you make a decent amount of money over a certain period.

Fixed Maturity Plans: A close ended scheme which has fixed term. A Fixed Maturity Plan is flexible as it offers tenure starting from 1 month to up to five years. Under Fixed Maturity Plan, the investment is invested in market securities. The profits earned from those investments help in making a considerable amount of money. However, when deciding to invest in this avenue, make sure that you only choose an AAA-rated FMP schemes.

Debt Mutual Funds: Under Debt Mutual Funds, the amount that you invest is allocated towards bonds and government securities. Mutual Funds do not have a fixed term. However, you can take your money out at whatever time you wish. You do not have to pay the penalty as compared to other forms of investment where you need to pay a certain penalty if you decide to withdraw prematurely.

Public Provident Fund: PPF is one of the most preferred investment schemes in the country. The most intriguing part about PPF is that it offers an interest rate of up to 9%. Even the investment cap offers flexibility as an investment can be made between the amounts of INR 500 to INR 1, 50,000 in a single year.

Thus, these were the few options wherein you can invest and make a considerable profit.

Dr Seema Bisht was in the process of expanding her dermatology clinic, shifting to a better location near the city centre. She also needed to hire more staff and purchase additional equipment like derma pens, skin lasers, dermatoscopes and cryoprobes for her practice. Looking for the right financing option, she heard of a customized loan for doctors that could take care of all her financial concerns. Built for doctors like her, the loan took care of her five most important concerns:

No wastage of time with easy online application and straightforward eligibility criteria

No hidden charges with transparency in interest rate and other fees

No need for her to travel with door-step service for document pickup

No long wait for sanction of the loan with approval within 24 hours

No need of collateral or guarantors to avail the personal and business loan

Loan amount of Rs.30 lakh that she could use to finance her clinic expansion needs

Nominal rate of interest which made her EMIs more affordable

Flexible repayment period from 12 to 60 months that gave her the freedom to choose a tenor that suited her income and current expenses

Minimal documents that didn’t require much effort to collect and submit

Line of credit facility that gave her the flexibility to avail what she needed from a credit line and pay only interest as EMIs

Part pre-payment option without any charges that made it easy for her to reduce her principal when she had excess funds

Pre-approved offers to other loans at attractive interest rates

Online access to loan account so she could check her repayment schedule and make EMI payments without needing to visit the branch

Today, Dr Bisht enjoys the feeling of helming a new and improved clinic. She realised that loans for doctors offer a total of 4 types of loans, which are Personal Loans, Business Loans, Home Loans and Loans Against Property. The next goal on Dr Bisht’s agenda is taking a home loan and purchasing the home of her choice for her family.

Like her, you too can gain immensely from the various benefits of doctor loans. These loans ensure your financing well-being in the following ways:

Offer you finances to cater to all your needs; be it for a range of personal reasons via a personal loan, for working capital, attending medical seminars out of the country or other business needs for your practice via a business loan, for purchasing a home via a home loan or for buying your second home or expanding your hospital via a loan against property

Offer high loan amounts up to Rs.30 lakh for personal and business loans and up to Rs.2 crore on home loans and loans against property

Offer you a line of credit option on personal loans, business loans, and loans against property to help you manage your cash flows better with interest-only EMIs

Offer your flexible tenors up to 60 months for personal and business loans, up to 180 months for loans against property and up to 240 months for home loans

In order to lead a comfortable life, we spend a lot of time working hard to earn as much money as we can by the way of putting in long hours of work, working overtime, and so forth. In order to secure one’s present and future, they have to make money even if it becomes a mundane thing to do. Earning money is on one side but saving it and investing it in the correct market avenues is another. However, when you make investments, they can either break or make your retirement plans. The right kind of investment is necessary as one puts their hard-earned money into these investments. Considering India, there are two investment options – Fixed Deposits (FDs) and Public Provident Fund (PPF). Both of these have several benefits and features and are trying to attract customers and are the most popular investment options in India.

Listed below are market investment will suit your needs:

Lock in Period/Maturity:

A lock-in-period or maturity is when the investment reaches its peak and can be used by the customer. A fixed deposit has lock-in-period from 7 days to 10 years, Whereas, the lock-in-period for a Public Provident Fund is a minimum of 15 years. Hence, an individual can invest in one of the two according to his investment needs.

Rate of Interest:

The Government fixes the rate of interest for PPFs and only they can change it. Individual banks or NBFCs set the interest rates for their fixed deposits, and a person will be able to get a higher rate of interest from a different bank. The interest rates offered by banks mostly range from 8.5-9%. Company fixed deposits have a higher rate of interest and are more profitable than any other financial institution.

Early Withdrawal:

Withdrawing money before maturity is a service offered by both fixed deposits and PPFs. However, in the case of PPF, withdrawal is only allowed after five years, whereas for fixed deposits, the bank charges you a certain amount of fee for breaking the fixed deposit or you can also take a loan from your FD account instead of breaking it.

Loan:

An emergency is something which can come at any point of time in your life. This means that you will have to take a loan in order to deal with the emergency. From the third year onwards, one can take a loan against their PPF. When you consider fixed deposits, most of the banks give 90% overdraft facility. NBFCs like Bajaj Finserv offer Loan against Fixed Deposits

Deduction in Tax:

Under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, certain investments can be claimed by individuals. Such deductions are available for both Tax Saving Fixed Deposits and Public Provident Funds. INR 1,50,000 is the present maximum deduction available for both investments on a per annum basis.

Amount of Investment:

The highest amount of investment one can make in a public provident fund is 1,50,000. This discourages people who want to invest more than that. On the other hand, a fixed deposit does not have any such restriction on the amount of money which can be invested. People also invest crores in fixed deposits in accordance with lender’s policy.

In the end, both Fixed Deposits and PPFs are secure and a safe market investment. However, it all boils down to personal preference and which one is the right investment for you. Hence, you need to make sure that your decision to choose one of them is the right one and will give you the desired returns.